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Editorial Reviews

It's not as if EMI hasn't released other recordings of Chopin's "Waltzes" since Dinu Lipatti recorded the works way back in 1950. It's that, until now, they've never released one that came anywhere near as close to perfection as Lipatti's did. Not that Stephen Kovacevich achieves perfection -- only Lipatti can claim that miraculous goal -- but he does come very, very close. The beauty and color of his tone, the elegance and expressivity of his technique, the delicacy and grace of his right-hand ornaments, the power and sensitivity of his left hand accompaniments, and, best of all, the indescribable rightness of his tempos does bring him very, very close to perfection. Indeed, the only real flaw one can point to is Kovacevich's occasional tendency toward ever-so-slightly too weighty -- one hesitates to say "Germanic" -- interpretations. Sometimes, the textures seem just a tad too thick and the rhythms seem a shade too stolid. But in the face of such obvious excellence, to complain seems curmudgeonly. Plus, with the coupling of Kovacevich's ironically ethereal and deeply affectionate if also ever-so-slightly too weighty performance of Ravel's "Valses nobles et sentimentales," this disc is richly filled with waltzes. If you can only have one recording of Chopin's "Waltzes," let it be the Lipatti. If you can, however, have two, by all means try Kovacevich's. Not only is it very, very close to perfection, but it has far better sound then Lipatti's, which is, after all, more than 50 years older. James Leonard, All Music Guide

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